AXLEY ON ABC TV VIRGINIA...THE SWEATER ANYWAY...AT LEAST PART OF IT

The Virginia based Seigler-Axley team (it's Axley-Seigler here on the PNW) participated in last weeks Tour of Virginia. Phil Robb from the team was interviewed on teh local ABC affiliate....is that the edge of an Axley sweater I see? If only that camera had panned down a little bit more.

Check it out here: http://www.wset.com/news/stories/0407/417391.html

US PAN-AMERICAN CHAMPIONSHIPS SELECTION

The US has announced its team for the Pan-American Championships to be held in Venezuela in May. The US men will only be racing the track events while the US women will do both road and track. Among those selected for the men is Seattle area fast man Kenny Williams who has more National and World championship (Senior and Masters combined) than I can even imagine. Let me first say congratulations to Kenny on his selection. Now to my point: I think that it is a sad state of affairs for the US track program that a guy my age (39 for the record) has been selected to represent the US at an international competition. Now this is not a swipe at Kenny, good for him that he is still kicking ass and taking names. No this is a swipe at the US track program (and USAC in general) that they still have not figured out a way to find and groom the next generation of riders. What is up with that? Your thoughts?

WORTH THE READ, McGOVERN RESPONDS TO CHENEY:

No comment from me other than that I think some good points are made in this Op-Ed piece by 1972 Democratic Presidential nominee George McGovern in the LA Times and I think that it is worth the read.

BRI/WALLA WALLA & FAT TIRE REPORT

(courtesy guest reporter and BRI team mate A. Luhn):

Walla Walla is in the books and done. Joe, Gavin and myself made the Mecca to wine country to hook up with our newest teammate, Remi M. He was probably thinking WTF when he met us. Joe's scar is still pink, I have a gut and pinned my number on all noonen & upside down, and all 3 of us are over 40. He was probably looking in his bag to see if he brought another kit

Stage 1 was in a town outside of Walla Walla a bit because there seems to be more hills there. We headed out, registered, got our numbers and put the game face on for a 4:20 start.

At 7 miles there was a sprint, at 11 there was a KOM. It was pretty MF'n fast. I'm talking a lot of single file with a 100 guys. I popped at the KOM and gathered with the weak children for the rest of the day dropping 19 minutes. Gavin & Joe had some fun chasing on a few times but survived with the main chase group. Remi closed a gap to within a few meters of what turned into the winning break, thought he had it closed, waited for someone to pull through, then watched them ride into the sunset.

65 miles, 4000 feet of climbing. Finished at about 7pm

Stage 2 was a sharp 8:45am out and back tt for breakfast. After a hard stage 1 and a late night, less than 30 guys raced it (Joe went hard enough to beat me). Everyone else rode it...because we had a 100 miles to do in aft. Remi & Richter rode side by side and caught up.

8 miles, 400 feet of climbing

Stage 3 was the Queen stage if you will. 1:45 roll out for 1 k then we headed directly to a 3 k climb. The race started in earnest from there on and we were off for a wine country tour. Second time up the hill there was a split in the field but it came back together. 3rd time up Remi made the sharp end, Gavin and I went over with Strangland and another dude, and Joe "conserved" because he was around a group with "horsepower". Gavin and I chased hard for 20 minutes, collected a couple of buddies and got back on. Joe, who had better buddies, including Tubbs, Chad and Ryan Miller got back on shortly afterwards. That took care of about 3 hours.

Somebody poked Remi with a cattle prod because that guy just started go off. He attacked a bunch (more than 5) and got enough attention and a lead that the race leader finally chased him down while his teammates watched.

The group minus 20 drop outs hit the final decent into town compacto with the hill top finish waiting after a long day. Buckeye rolled up and said lets grab Remi "he was 5th over the climb last time". Ok. So we collected Gavin and cheated like a bastard passing the bunch on the left. We got to the front with 1 k before the s turns in town. I got along side Remi and said we're here and ready to sell out. He said thank you very much but he was fine where he was and in good position. Hopefully, the R-man could look at the color of his jersey and say I'm on the same team...with a bunch geriatric seniors all jacked up, but still at the front of the race with the leaders after 90+ miles reporting for duty.

The race up the hill totally split everyone up and Remi stayed with the leaders all the way to the final few feet and dropped a few seconds to the stage winner. Great performance after being as active as he was. Joe, Gavin and I hit the hill with the bunch but just tempoed up. Gavin did just enough to stay in front of Joe. Joe made sure he was in front of me. I...I thought about selling out and punking Joe ;) Our little race inside of the race. Joe and Gavin finished up around 2:30 back and I was around 3:00. Good day for all of us.

Stage 4 was the DT crit. It rained all morning and the mood was grim. Remi was jacked up for a rain crit and so was I, but by the time the gun went off it was dry pave. Buckeye was thinking about not riding for obvious reasons, but the man from Ohio lined up. Props.

My Clif shot hit the system when the gun went off and I sprinted to the front and lead the first lap. Did it do anything? Yes, it made me really tired for the next 55 minutes and got a few folks single file. 30 minutes of squirrelly crit riding by a bunch of tired guys. Then All Idaho started blazing near the front, then was in a break with 4 guys that turned into 3. The pack chased hard for 20 minutes but never caught Remi & the break. Remi got one more cattle prod and took the sprint for the V and a stage win.

60 minutes, 25mph +average, 27 miles

Great weekend of racing. Remi started to get his swerve on real good. The old guys rode well and like a team when it counted. Our GC placings sucked but I think we all drove away with a job well done, no road rash and a big stage race in the legs.

Fines-
1. $5 Luhn for noonen number pinning
2. 1:30 for heading to the pits for a "handle bar" adjustment and a rest in the crit
3. $10 Buckeye for none team issue socks & gloves (suspended unless another infraction) (editor: official protest as Seigler is BRI's official tubular tire sponsor)

First month awards:

For best off the couch, Remi & Toby
Rookie moves of the year...Luhn is leading. Chasing down Joe at Seward and number pinning.

Have one,

a

PINK IS FAST, OH SO VERY FAST

The Southbay Wheelemen Women's Elite Team went 1-2 on GC at the Conquer the Canyons Stage Race in Los Angeles on the who-so-eye-catching pink Seigler Komen bikes this past weekend. This picture (courtesy http://www.socalcycling.com/) shows eventual winner Jennifer Reither rolling off the start ramp during the 4 mile uphill T.T. up Mullholland.

At the same time that the ladies were kicking ass and taking names, Axley-Seigler Rider Joe Wiley was riding to a fine 2nd place at the Walla Walla Stage race, also on Seigler pink (you see, Joe is so fast and manly that he loves the pink Seigler and dares anyone to give him lip about it). Joe sent the eventual winner's team into a frenzy in both the road race and crit stages attacking off the front looking for those precious seconds he needed to win. (Joe W on pink photo by Amara)

So, if you are looking to go fast, maybe you need to get Seigler pink as well. Sure, I suppose there is training and genetics and all that other stuff, but, well, I'm just saying...pink is fast. Plus, 10% of the sales of any Seigler Komen frame or complete bike goes to the Susan G. Komen Foundation, so, you can be fast and help raise money for a good cause. I'm just saying.....

WALLA WALLA....ouch!

The team and I traveled to the Walla Walla Stage Race last weekend and came away with a win in the criterium stage on Sunday. Congratulations to Remi on a great ride.

It was pretty much a survival contest for me with the intent of getting through it and coming out the other side with some fitness. That almost all came to naught though in the very first stage on Friday. It was a 4pm start, 69 mile road race with an advertised 42oo feet of climbing. All I know is that at one point during the race, I looked down at my computer, saw 28 miles and thought to myself "oh my God, we are not even half-way". Not a good thought to have. This stage was a bitch, at least for me, and from what I hear, from many others as well. Saturday saw us return for a 10k time trial with 400 feet of elevation gain (first rider off at 8:45) and then we came back for a 2pm start of the 95 mile road race that had 5000 feet of climbing. Sunday we actually got to sleep in and race a 60min crit (again, we won).

Now, I think that this race has some potential, but the promoter has got to change the time and/ or stage format. Finishing a 69 mile road race that seemed to always be climbing at 7pm only to be back at 8am to get ready for a time trial just does not allow enough recovery time. You are way to jacked up to get any real sleep. Then to have us do over 100 miles in the afternoon (with the roll out and riding back after the finish) is almost inhuman, especially for a bunch of amateurs who pretty much do this for a hobby. I think he needs to either do a crit in Waitesburg on Friday night and then keep the rest of the format the same (he could probably do away with the short loop on the Saturday road race which would still leave us racing close to 80 miles). Either that, or he needs to do the Friday road race start a lot earlier in the day.

The other thing that gets me are time cuts for local stage races like this. Especially with a hell stage for the first stage. Just let everyone keep racing. It is not like we are tyring to earn UCI point or anything. Leave the time cuts to the big boys in the big races.

One thing I really like about this race though is the crit, great course in a great small town.

That's all I got. PNW Buckeye....out.

BRI WINS WALLA WALLA CRIT!!
New BRI member and former National Road Race Champ, Remi McManus wins the last stage of the Walla Walla Stage Race this past weekend.

(photo courtesy of Amara)

TST REPORT

Well, as you know, I raced TST over the weekend. Add a crit the next day and that equals that I was so tired from the weekend that it took me this long to comment on it.

The night before TST is was raining like crazy and cold, bringing back memories of last years snow fest. I packed the biggest single day race bag I have ever packed, throwing about every article of clothing and form of rain jacket I owned into it. Driving out in the morning I went through small patches of light drizzle which was exactly what it was doing in the morning last year. Fortunately though, the weather smiled on us and the sun actually started to poke out amongst the clouds. Still paranoid and scarred from last year, I was way overdressed once the racing began (which was exactly 1 mile into the race after we rolled out the half-mile, took a left and started to go immediately up hill).

I made it to to Holly Hill with the bunch, just getting tailed off over the top of Anderson, getting back on at the base of Holly and then having the legs finally come off. After that it was a training ride with 5 or 6 other guys to the finish. I was disappointed at not making the selection but at the end of the day, since it was 11 weeks ago that I was lying in a hospital bed following a pretty significant surgery, the fact that I was on the start line and made it that far was a good thing.

Sunday was the local crit at Seward Park. I actually felt pretty good, covered some moves and then....crashed. WTF?! I was covering a move with Chad and Strangelove, Chad skipped a pedal in the 180 turn causing Strangelove to panic, brake when fully leaned over into the turn, lock it up and high side. I t-boned right into him and flipped over, hitting my, that's right....elbow. Again...WTF?! Needless to say, I was pretty mentally shaken up and took a couple of laps to do full elbow inventory. Everything seemed to bend like it should so I got back in, taking a number of laps to get the head screwed back on. Then with 5 to go, the prime bell rang, I actually won it and got some hero time off the front for the next 2 laps. Nice.

A big thanks to everyone who asked if I was ok not only after the race but during. That means a lot.

The pic is of me during my hero time, taken by Amara (who takes all the best pics).

Next up: Walla Walla Stage Race (with the worst double stage day ever: TT in the morning, 80 mile road race in the afternoon, ouch).

MAYBE MIRACLES DO HAPPEN

The following was posted to our team email list on Jan. 26 by my team mate Andy:

I picked up Joe Holmes yesterday at the ferry dock and delivered him to his previous elbow surgeon to perform magic on his fleshly broken elbow. For those of you that don't know, Joe was cruising up a climb with his business partner and they hooked bars that resulted in Joe going down and breaking his elbow (same one he did last fall on the track). This required surgery and I am happy to report that the surgeon did not have toe re-break his first fracture to repair the second, which could have happened.

When I picked him up he did mention that TST is 11 weeks out. Very fitting and optimistic form the Buckeye. Don't put it past Joe that he is truly thinking about being on a 100% form for this spring classic that he covets. It would be a miracle, but he is a Buckeye and because of that anything can happen.

Well, TST is tomorrow, and I am registered. I may not be 100%, but I am at least 85%. So I say: Maybe miracles do happen, bring it on.

TST WEEKEND

TST or, Tahuya-Seabeck-Tahuya is this weekend. TST is a 64 mile road race on 1 big loop with over 4100 feet of climbing held on the roads of Kitsap and Mason Counties (or in other words, in my backyard). Classic. The promoting club likes to state that this race is supposed to remind you of the spring Belgium classics. We all know that sort of embellishment is tossed around by just about everyone this time of year. Races are held all over the US that try to bring some of the luster of the spring European classics to their meager attempts. From the Ronde von Toledo, Ohio to the Omloop de Madison, Wisconsin ,they turn out to be nothing more than a flat circuit race that might go over a short section of bricks. TST is not one of those races. As mentioned before, it packs over 4000 feet of climbing into 65 miles and is held on a course that is one giant loop. There are basically 4 major selection spots, starting with the climb that comes at mile 1. And then there is the weather, it is after all April in the Pacific Northwest. If you have any doubt just take a look at these pictures on http://www.wheelsinfocus.com/2006/TST.htm from last year's race. If you scroll down far enough, you will see the photos of it snowing in the feed zone.

I have always loved the early spring season hilly road races. When I moved here in the summer of 2003 and found out about TST I got all fired up since it sounded like a cool race that was held on roads in my new stomping grounds. Something always seemed to go awry though with my participation in it. 2004 I had to have emergency eye surgery for a detached retina, so no TST. 2005 I came down with a bad cold in the week preceding it, so no TST. Last year, no ailments, training going great and then the 40 degrees and rain which led to my complete come-apart in the snow that was falling at the top of Holly Hill in the feedzone. This year: a busted elbow requiring surgery a mere 11 weeks prior thus derailing my preparation and now some sort of sinus issue brought about by allergies.

No matter though, because I am registered and will be lining up with my Beneroya Research Institute team mates this Saturday in Tahuya. I have been waving my "No rain/snow and 40 degree temperatures" Talisman and keeping an eye on the weather report. I did all sorts of mind-numbing hellacious trainer workouts for 7 weeks straight followed by a blitzkrieg bloc of road miles in the last 3 weeks. So maybe, just maybe this will be the year for me to get through the entire race, make all the selections and be sprinting for the top placings at the end. No matter what though, I will be there, with a grin on my face.

A bitter pill to swallow instead of the sweet taste of a degree of revenge:

Florida 84, Ohio State 75.

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/04/03/sports/ncaabasketball/03men.html

Florida beats Ohio State again in 2007 to win a college national championship.

GO BUCKEYES!!

Well, it's THE Ohio State University versus Florida for a national championship....again. This time it's roundball. Here is hoping we don't revisit the disaster of January. Oh revenge, it can taste so sweet.